Cahier Africain

Cahier Africain ([kaje afʁikɛ̃], "African Notebook") is a 2016 documentary film by Heidi Specogna, a Swiss filmmaker. Beginning in 2008, Specogna's long-term observation follows the lives of two young Central African woman, Amzine and Arlette. The film was prompted by the discovery of a small exercise book, full of courageous testimonies by more than 300 victims of war crimes committed by Central African mercenaries during armed conflict between October 2002 and March 2003.

Cahier Africain
Directed byHeidi Specogna
Written byHeidi Specogna
Produced byPeter Spoerri, Stefan Tolz, Heidi Specogna
CinematographyJohann Feindt
Edited byKaya Inan
Music byPeter Scherer
Production
companies
Filmpunkt, PS Film
Distributed byRushlake Media GmbH
Filmbringer Distribution AG
Release date
  • August 7, 2016 (2016-08-07) (Locarno)
Running time
118 minutes
CountriesSwitzerland
Germany
LanguagesArabic, French, English

Content

As a result of rape, Amzine, a young Muslim woman, gave birth to a child. Looking at her now 12-year-old daughter Fane is a daily reminder of the suffering she entrusted to this book.

Arlette, a Christian girl, has agonised for years due to a gunshot to the knee that did not want to heal. After a successful surgery in Berlin, she holds on to hope for a pain-free existence.

But while the two young woman try to master their difficult daily lives with confidence – and while, in The Hague, the legal prosecution of crimes committed during the last war is still in progress – the next war breaks out in the Central African Republic. Amzine, Fane' and Arlette must once again face a maelstrom of violence, death and expulsion. At their side, the film bears witness to the collapse of order and civilization in a country torn apart by civil war and coup d’états.

Reception

Giorgia Del Don writes for Cineurope: "Heidi Specogna’s latest film literally speaks through images [..] about a sad and hopeless beauty. Without ever toppling over into pity, the director portrays the everyday reality of her protagonists with dashes of hope." She particularly praises the intensity of the film: "Heidi Specogna [...] make[s] us understand to what extent life has the same value everywhere. A terrible and poetic film it takes extreme courage to watch."[1]

Awards

Cahier Africain won the Zonta Club Award at Locarno International Film Festival 2016.[2]

At DOK Leipzig 2016, Cahier Africain was awarded the Silver Dove.[3]

Cahier Africain received the 2016 German Human Rights Film Award (Deutscher Menschenrechts-Filmpreis) [4]

References
  1. Del Don, Giorgia (2016-09-08). "Cahier africain: A glimpse into people's lives that's full of dignity". Cineuropa. Retrieved 2016-09-05.
  2. Winners Locarno 2016 as PDF Retrieved 2016-09-05
  3. Award Winners DOK Leipzig 2016 (German) Retrieved 2016-11-10
  4. Deutscher Menschenrechts-Filmpreis (German) Archived 2016-11-10 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 2016-11-10
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